Lorre White, “The Luxury Guru” defines luxury as a “quality of life”, not simply amassing quantity “ It is an enlightened approach to living”.. Private jets to Perfume, Yoga to Yachts, Exotic car to Candle, Watches to Wines ….Lorre is the expert on all things luxury! Reaching the UHNW, Luxury Influencer Lorre White's blog ranked #3 Globally for Luxury Blogs in 2015 Brand Passion Report for Global Luxury Brands by NetBase & #1 of the blogs that reach the wealthy customer.

* A Luxury Expert on TV, Radio & Web - CNN.MONEY, ABC, NBC. FOX NATIONAL, and in magazines globally
* Wrote a monthly column in Portugal's #1 rated Luxury Magazine DNLife w/ over 1.2 million subscribers
* Only internationally recognized Luxury Media Personality.
* Has an extensive social media reach. Owns THE LUXURY CHANNEL Video podcasts on iTunes & Zune
* An international luxury marketing consultant for elite brands and owner of White Light Consulting
* This blog is read by the Ultra High Net Worth and the luxury brands trying to reach that demographic
* Lorre White is highly networked and connected in the world of luxury
* Contributes to business & Luxury magazines globally.
* A member of Who's Who In America for contribution to the American Luxury Market & as a Luxury Personality.

Business

Warren Buffett and Lorre White in Omaha

Luxury

Lorre White is a member of several private invitatition only networks like A Small World, SQUA.RE, Total Prestige, Qube, eVelvet Rope, Diane Fey, LStyle, EuroCircle, Internations, Global Urbanities, Hampton undercover, and other.....

Luxury Marketing Advice

"If a luxury brand asks whether they should spend scarce funds on opening another store, launching a print advertising campaign, or investing in a great website and online advertising, the Internet wins every time as the fastest, cheapest, and most effective way to leverage a luxury brand in today's global marketplace".CEO Milton Pedraza, The Oct issue Wealth Report by the Luxury Index

Shopping

Lorre shopping at the foot of the Spanish Steps in Rome

Travel

Lorre on her way to a party in Monaco

About the Luxury Channel

The Luxury Channel video podcasts offers sponsors a sophisticated web media reach for elite brands to reach a wealthy demographic world wide by a respected luxury expert. This allows these brands to benefit from the most powerful and fastest growing media source, the web. Americans use the internet to shop twice as much as the average individual. People spend more time on the web then in front of the TV. A recent study done by The Luxury Institute found that Luxury consumers were disappointed in the weakness of luxury brands to meet their on line needs. Luxury brands were slow to enter fearing affiliation with the mass marketers and an inability to supply “the luxury experience”. The purpose of The Luxury Channel is to bring a luxury venue to the web where elite brands can have an appropriate environment to share their product knowledge and services in a sophisticated global reach. By all the brands sharing one venue it saves companies millions of dollars by having to establish their own channel from scratch and creating and producing content and paying to market their channel against all the other thousands of luxury brand’s channels. Any commercial agency can create a product video for a company, but with The Luxury Guru you get the video and a way to distribute it internationally.

February 23, 2017

The Wealth-X World Ultra Wealth Report 2015-2016

Wealth-X presents the World Ultra Wealth Report 2015-2016 revealing that there are 212,615 ultra high net worth (UHNW) individuals globally, holding a combined wealth of US$30 trillion in net assets.

The fourth edition of this leading report on the world’s ultra wealthy population shows almost flat growth in 2015 as the number of individuals with US$30 million or more in net assets grew just 0.6% and total UHNW wealth increased by 0.8%. Despite this meager growth, UHNW individuals, who account for just 0.004% of the world’s adult population, still control 12% of its wealth.

Regional Differences in UHNW Growth Trends

In Europe, the Middle East and Africa UHNW wealth fell 2.4% as equity markets, local currencies and gross domestic product collectively experienced negative net returns. By contrast, Asia-Pacific experienced a 3.9% rise as the ultra wealthy in certain markets continued to benefit from dynamic business expansion and economic growth. In the Americas, it was Latin America, rather than North America, that helped the region achieve a modest 1.5% growth in ultra wealth value.

Across all geographic regions, it is the highest ranks of the UHNW population who are experiencing the most success.The report highlights that in 2015 billionaires saw their wealth grow 5.4%, more than double the rate of global economic growth, while collectively other tiers saw their wealth shrink by 0.6%.

Driven by Wealth-X’s unparalleled collection of hand curated dossiers on the global UHNW population, the World Ultra Wealth Report contains detailed analysis of the wealthiest individuals in the world with a focus on geography, lifestyle, social networks, philanthropic behaviors, motivations and legacy.

Additional key findings from the report include:

UHNW global wealth is expected to reach US$46.2 trillion by 2020

UHNW wealth is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 9%.

The UHNW population is expected to exceed 318,000 by 2020.

Female UHNW individuals saw their wealth decrease

While the female UHNW population remained steady at 13%, their share of total UHNW wealth fell from 14% to 11% this year. Average female high net worth wealth dropped from US$147 million to US$126.3 million.

Male wealth increased 2.4% from US$139.8 million to US$143.1 million, reflecting a greater focus on self-made wealth and a higher-risk asset composition.

Finance, banking and investment remains the top UHNW industry

Though its lead among other UHNW industries continues to shrink as manufacturing grows in importance.

In two out of three cases, wealth is purely self-made rather than inherited. As wealth matures in younger economies, the transfer of wealth has seen a growing class of second-generation ultra wealthy emerge.

Wealth continues to rise generation by generation

The under-30 demographic accounts for just 1% of the world’s ultra wealthy population and 0.3% of global UHNW wealth.

UHNW individuals aged 80 or over are seven times wealthier than those under 30 and are worth nearly double that of the average UHNW individual globally.

The little black book for billionaires lists all the mad must-have services for the super rich, from a cigar adviser to a 'wellness concierge'

There's never been a trickier time to be one of the stinking rich. Take poor old Johnny Depp.

Last week, legal papers lodged by his former management company revealed he got through a staggering £21 million in the past year alone – including £24,000 a month on wine, £159,000 a month on private planes and £238,600 a month maintaining his staff of 40.

But then today’s super-rich need far more help than a chauffeur and a butler or two. This is where Spear’s can help.

The magazine and research company publishes a directory of 500 advisers, consultants, agents and managers for Ultra High Net Worth Individuals (UHNWIs) – and this year’s entries are so eclectic they’ll stretch your credulity, as well as your wallet. Just don’t query what they cost.

As they say, if you need to ask you can’t afford it. Here’s our pick of the most peculiar...

COUNSELLOR TO HELP KIDS COPE WITH CASH

A counsellor can help steer the children of UHNWIs through the special problems that come from having way too much money

With kind eyes and a gentle smile, Mark Boyden, a psychotherapist and executive coach, is the go-to man to ensure the billionaire’s family maintains an emotional and mental even keel.

As well as dealing with issues that affect us all, such as stress, addiction and anxiety, Boyden and his team can also help steer the children of UHNWIs through the special problems that come from having way too much money, and help the billionaire deal with personal problems that arise in the ‘family offices’ – the term for businesses established by UHNWIs to manage the wealth of themselves and their dependents. Money, it seems, buys you a better class of unhappiness.

BOOKIE FOR BILLIONAIRES

There’s no need for billionaires to slum it in the local bookmaker’s. Instead, many UHNWIs head to the bookie Fitzdares, established and run by the magnificently named Balthazar Fabricius, and backed by Zac and Ben Goldsmith.

Located in a Mayfair townhouse, punters – who have to be proposed and seconded for membership – gamble many thousands of pounds on all manner of events, and can even bet on private backgammon tournaments at exclusive London clubs.

Fabricius won’t forget his biggest ever loss, when a client bet £50,000 at 10-1 on a no-score draw in a football match between Watford and Crystal Palace. Although that hurt, Fabricius is still very much in business.

YOUR SUPERYACHT SUPERVISOR

A fancy superyacht is the ultimate billionaire’s status symbol - but they're not easy to run

It’s all very well to have bought your superyacht, but you have to keep the thing afloat. With estimated running costs of £3 million to £5 million per year, the ultimate billionaire’s status symbol is a business operation in itself.

And, like any business, the superyacht needs a management team. The best man to handle everything from hiring a crew to supervising a refit is undoubtedly Jonathan Beckett, the eminence grise of the superyacht world, who has been afloat since 1975.

‘When someone says, “jump” then you jump,’ he says, displaying a humility that makes him such a firm favourite with his well-keeled clients.

THE NUCLEAR BUNKER BROKER

People are worried about Doomsday once again, and no more so than the uber-minted. And what better response than burrowing underground – or buying up a luxuriously-converted nuclear bunker or rocket silo in which to see out Armageddon? This is where Edward Peden & Dianna Ricke-Peden, bunker agents supreme, come in handy. With properties such as the Atlas E Missile Site in Kansas on sale for $3.2 million, they may ensure your family and your wealth survive a Trump-inspired nuclear conflagration. Problem is, will there be anything left to spend your money on when it’s all over?

THE CIGAR CONSULTANT

Cigar consultants advise plutocrats how to burn through their money

DIRK Seyfried, manager of the exclusive James J. Fox Cigar Merchants on St James’s Street in London, holds the unusual qualification of being a Master of Havana Cigars. There is nobody better qualified in Britain to advise plutocrats how to burn through their money, especially with boxes of cigars costing hundreds of pounds.

Although Seyfried is happy catering to the needs of the UHNWIs, he finds that cigars are classless. ‘You can find a huge selection of people from all over the world and all types of background, happily enjoying the moment with fellow cigar smokers,’ he reassures us.

THE WELLNESS CONCIERGE

'Wellness concierges' prepare an entire routine

UHNWIs don’t have personal trainers any more. That’s so 2016.

No, what they have are ‘wellness concierges’, such as Simon Blackford of Ellidore Lifestyle, who will prepare an entire routine of work-outs, massages, yoga, nutrition, detoxes – and a car to take you from appointment to appointment with the most high-end of practitioners.

Even the busiest of billionaires now has no excuse for not having a body beautiful.

PHILANTHROPY ADVISER

When it comes to describing his approach to advising UHNWIs on how to dispose of their riches, David Carrington is fond of quoting Aristotle: ‘To give away money is an easy matter and in any man’s power. But to decide to whom to give it, and how large, and when, and for what purpose and how, is neither in every man’s power nor an easy matter.’

Carrington hopes to promote wise spending, enabling his clients to have ‘helped someone do something very special’.

A bit worthy perhaps, but really, what’s not to like? Far better to help the deserving than spend it all on superyacht fuel.

The neighborhood’s average per-square-foot price is higher than Manhattan, report finds

London’s Mayfair neighborhood beats Manhattan as the most expensive ultra-prime market in terms of price per square foot, according to a February report by Beauchamp Estates.

In its fourth “Ultra-Prime Barometer” report, the London-based luxury residential brokerage said the average per-square-foot price for Mayfair ultra-prime homes has reached £3,853 (US$4,812), while it is £3,575(US$4,464) for Manhattan.

The threshold for ultra-prime properties differs for each location. For example, Beauchamp Estates defines ultra-prime properties in Manhattan and Mayfair as those priced over US$15 million and £10 million, respectively.

A Glance at Global Ultra-Prime Markets

Neighborhood/City, Country

Per-square-foot Price

Average Price

Threshold for Ultra-Prime

Mayfair/London, United Kingdom

£3,869

£18.4M

£10M

Manhattan/New York, U.S.A.

£3,575

£21.5M

$15M

French Riviera, France

£3,046

£19.0M

€18M

Tuscany, Italy

£849

£13.3M

€10-30M

Mykonos, Greece

£724

£4.3M

€3M

Tel Aviv, Israel

£2,427

£8.4M

$5M

Herzilya, Israel

£1,574

£13.6M

$5M

Source: Beauchamp Estates

Despite global political and economic uncertainties, demand for ultra-prime residential property remains solid, as the wealth of the ultra-high-net-worth individuals—the population worth at least $50 million—is expected to increase, according to the report.

Citing data from Wealth-X, a leading global wealth information provider, the report predicts that the number of ultra-high-net-worth individuals will exceed 318,000 by 2020 from the current 212,615, about a third of whom are Americans.

“Our view is that 2017 will not bring any dramatic swings in values, rather it will be a year in which buyers and sellers remain calm and measured,” the report said.

However, each individual market is faced with different challenges. The exchange rate, Brexit and new Stamp Duty taxes largely influence Mayfair’s market, while Manhattan is still absorbing the “Trump Effect” and facing a slowdown in new luxury builds, according to the report.

Despite slower economic growth, 2016 set the bar high for luxury brands. From Virtual Reality to ethical initiatives, marketers pushed the boundaries when it came to innovations and tech. As we ease into 2017, the challenge for luxury brands will be to continue to innovate in ways that drive engagement and provide unique experiences.

Brand collaborations are an increasingly popular way to supercharge reach. WGSN’s recent survey for Walpole found that partnerships were a key tactic for bridging online and offline experiences, with 78% of luxury brands set to collaborate by 2020. Whether it’s for content distribution or the creation of a co-branded product, partnerships allow brands to explore new territories and engage with consumers in new and exciting ways.

With the global luxury market set to reach €295 billion by 2020, we delve into how clever collaborations can help capture the hearts and minds of tomorrow’s consumers. What should brands be considering? And which brands are already leading the way?

Travel companions

Luxury and experience go hand-in-hand, and there’s now increasing pressure for brands to seamlessly integrate into people’s lifestyles. As consumer preferences shift from products to experiences, the thirst for travel is set to soar. A number of brands are collaborating to capitalise on the huge travel zeitgeist, ensuring that they can reach the right audiences in the right places in the right ways.

A brand doing just that is high-end department store Saks and its smart collaboration with United Airlines’ new business class experience.

Passengers in the newly launched Polaris cabin are made to feel at home with custom-made Saks’ bedding, which includes duvets, day blankets, slippers, pillows and pajamas, ensuring an elevated level of comfort.

To celebrate the launch of the Polaris experience, Saks Fifth Avenue teamed up with United to reveal an immersive window display, designed to make passers-by feel like they were walking through the luxurious cabin. Entitled "Now Arriving," the 14 storefront windows featured the various aspects of the Polaris experience, including the new seats, Saks’ bedding and even a replica of a United Airlines plane.

Travel provides an exciting opportunity for fashion brands, like Saks, to offer unique experiences and integrate their products in new and engaging ways.

Similarly, Alexander McQueen’s collaboration with Globe Trotter is another example of powerful partnerships in the world of luxury. The two British brands, both renowned for their flawless craftsmanship, united to create a limited-edition luggage range that strengthens both brands’ appeal. The label brings its signature details to the company's iconic luggage, featuring silver studs that wrap around the case and a lining of the signature McQueen black and ivory skull print pattern.

Magellan Jets has used their brand partnership to focus on reaching and incentivising new members. They’ve teamed up with the new luxury label Passavant and Lee to design an exclusive version of the brand’s No. 25 briefcase. Any new client who booked a 10-hour holiday jet card could receive the briefcase as a thank you.

Collaborative content

It’s not just travel where luxury collaborations thrive. The content overload in today’s market is causing native advertising to become increasingly important as a way for brands to connect with consumers. And an original brand partnership is the perfect way to give weight to that unique content.

Gucci has partnered with world renown publisher GQ to create a native content campaign in an attempt to make a greater impact on its customers. Together they are exploring how individuals are inspired by people and places.

Collaborations are by no means a new way for brands to reach customers. But to truly standout and be effective, luxury brands should be leveraging relevancy, ambitions and exclusivity, whilst always making sure to put the customer first.

By teaming up with companies that are targeting similar audiences, yet with difference offerings, brands can maximize their impact reach and create unique experiences. And like all great collaborations, if well executed, the end result is greater than the sum of its parts.

Salvatore Ferragamo’s CEO aims to outperform the luxury sector average by a factor of two, surpassing €2 billion in revenue by 2020.

LONDON, United Kingdom — Eraldo Poletto, Salvatore Ferragamo’s CEO since August 2016, is aiming high. With a new strategy in place, he expects Ferragamo to outperform average luxury sector sales growth by a factor of two, driving annual gains of 8 percent each year until 2020, by which time the company plans to hit €2 billion in revenue. Over the next three years, Poletto also aims to raise gross margins by two percent.

While I might quibble over the actual figures and timeframe — it will certainly take a while to put everything into place — there’s little doubt that Ferragamo is waking up. That’s not to say that the Italian group has been completely dormant. Under the leadership of the company’s previous CEO Michele Norsa, Ferragamo overhauled its distribution network and operations and improved consistency across its product categories. My readings suggest that these efforts certainly managed to warm up the brand — and profitability certainly improved — but Ferragamo never became hot. In fact, in 2015, sales momentum began to fade.

Getting the company into shape will require a critical eye on what the Salvatore Ferragamo brand means to customers as well as a focus on product and retail performance.

On the first of these points, Ferragamo is starting from a very strong base. The brand has a brand awareness and desirability surplus in China; it is one of the three most desired brands in France; and it outscores competitors on brand desirability in the US. In other words, the company has a very strong platform, but has work to do to close the brand awareness and desirability gap with the sector’s leaders. The company’s plans for new, sharply focused communication and a big push online could make a difference.

This brings me to the second point: product and retail innovation. This is a work-in-progress following the appointment of a trio of creative talent: Paul Andrew for women’s footwear, Fulvio Rigoni for womenswear and Guillaume Meilland for menswear; a fourth appointment, in leather goods, is likely. The Autumn/Winter 2017 collections should reflect the new team’s collective firepower, but already the Spring/Summer 2017 womenswear collection shows the hand of Fulvio Rigoni, who actually joined Ferragomo in January 2016 and unofficially drove the brand’s September womenswear show.

On the retail side, much has already been done. Over the last few years, the brand has revamped more than 150 stores. But the brand’s historical sales strategy is linked to US department stores and vertical integration in retail has not driven strong performance. Eraldo Poletto’s plans for greater “newness” and smarter merchandising are backed by front-line empowerment at retail.

Now, it’s all about putting Poletto’s proposals into action. I have the impression that he wants to have all the key business drivers under control and to mould a company that can adapt strategically to the changing industry environment. This will take time — the first new products will not be in the stores before April — and success is by no means guaranteed. But Ferragamo appears to be stirring and its new CEO could well be the one to awaken and activate this “sleeping beauty” brand.

London has been placed as the number one city for luxury retail in a new report as it reinforces its position as a global leader in high-end jewellery retail.

New data shows more luxury stores opened in London than in any other city last year – a total of 41 new openings –compared to Paris’ 36 and New York’s 31.

According to the Global Luxury Retail report, 15 of the new openings were brands’ first ever stores in London.

Luxury outlets stocking fine jewellery, including Harrods and Harvey Nichols have seen business bolstered substantially as tourists seeking high-end discount goods have flocked to London as a result of a weak pound.

In spite of strong tourism numbers though, jewellers in London are set to face challenges this year in regards to business rate revaluations.

De Beers said it is considering abandoning its London flagship due to the hike in business rates and it is estimated that businesses in the city could pay an extra £4 billion over the next five years under the rates revaluation.

For the second consecutive year, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts tops Forbes Travel Guide ratings with record number of Five-Star properties

TORONTO, Feb. 22, 2017 /CNW/ -- Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, the world's leading luxury hospitality company, today announced that Forbes Travel Guide has awarded a Five-Star rating – its highest honour – to 30 Four Seasons properties worldwide. The recognition marks the largest number of Five-Star ratings awarded to a hotel brand in a single year in the list's nearly 60-year history.

"Our record number of Five-Star ratings is a tremendous achievement and a direct reflection of the passionate and dedicated people of Four Seasons," says J. Allen Smith, President and CEO, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. "It is their commitment to excellence and genuine care for our guests that creates the unforgettable experiences that Four Seasons is known for the world over."

Star ratings are awarded by a team of anonymous professional inspectors. In the words of Forbes Travel Guide, its inspectors "travel the world to assess hotels, restaurants and spas against up to 800 objective standards." Star ratings ultimately emphasise quality of service. Five-Star properties are defined as "outstanding, often iconic properties with virtually flawless service and amazing facilities."

Forbes Travel Guide rates properties in 42 countries throughout the Americas, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, with plans to add the Middle East and Africa for 2018.

February 21, 2017

Exciting preview of the new flybridge yachtsailing on the Ligurian Sea, awaiting its debut in Hong Kong

La Spezia, the jaw-dropping beauty of Riva 100' Corsaro could not find a more ideallocation than the Golfo dei Poeti, a place of enchanting splendor, in one of the most beautiful and worldrenownedregions of Italy

The series of photo shoots off the coast of the Ligurian Sea have immortalized its first nautical miles traveledand intensified the wait for its official introduction in Hong Kong in April 2017.Its first time on display in Hong Kong will be the ideal occasion to celebrate the truly limitless success of anicon of sporty style and luxury, proven by the fact that the entire 2017 production is already sold out to a fewselective ship owners.

The Riva 100' Corsaro is born from the collaboration between Officina Italiana Design - the studio foundedby designer Mauro Micheli alongside Sergio Beretta - exclusive designer for the entire Riva fleet, the StrategicProduct Committee and the Ferretti Group Engineering Department. It is the natural heir to previouslegendary models as well as the perfect combination of comfort, performance, style and safety.

Its majestic dimensions are arranged harmoniously with the athleticism of the design, 100’ Corsaro ischaracterized by a sharp profile, which evokes the shape of an arrow with metallic colors in dark tones andlarge glass surfaces.

In particular, the layout of the first unit will present exclusive, original interiors that reflect the style and highstandards of its owner.

Luxury concierge service provider Quintessentially Lifestyle is setting sail on its own floating members' club, the Quintessentially One super yacht.

When complete is 2019, the Quintessentially One will be the world’s largest super yacht ever built. Unlike traditional cruising, where guests disembark to explore a location, Quintessentially One will dock at the world’s most elite locations and people will become more interested in coming aboard.

"At Quintessentially, we operate a high-touch service, and ensure that we make our members' lives as streamlined, comfortable and easy as possible," said Aaron Simpson, co-founder of Quintessentially Lifestyle, London.

"We already have very close and personal relationships with our members, and know exactly what it is they want, so it makes sense for us to be able to provide this service on top of everything else we already offer to them," he said.

Docking for luxuryQuintessentially Lifestyle’s super yacht will clock in at 720 feet, 131 feet longer than Azzam, the world’s largest privately owned vessel.

Expected to take its first voyage in 2019-2020, production of the super yacht cost $264 million. According to Travel + Leisure, some of the capital needed for construction was fronted by five millionaire friends, who in return will have personal suites aboard the yacht.

The lifestyle concierge service plans to continuously sail around the world to ensure that it is docked at select high-profile events frequented by international elite.

Beach club area aboard the Quintessentially One super yacht, computer rendering

Quintessentially Lifestyle plans to dock the boat at events such as the Monaco Grand Prix, the Cannes Film Festival, the Rio Festival and Cuba, an increasingly popular tourist destination among affluent U.S. travelers (see story) as well as 5-star hotel development, such as The Gran Hotel Kempinski Manzana La Habana, scheduled to open this coming spring.

Essentially creating a “seaborne private members club,” when the Quintessentially One docks, members and passersby alike will want to spend time exploring the vessel and taking advantage of its onboard perks.

The super yacht’s social calendar will include exclusive parties and performances by world-class entertainers as well as onboard amenities such as dining and hotel accommodations. Nightly rates will start at approximately $2,500.

Quintessentially One will offer 12 residential suites and 112 guest rooms in its boutique-style hotel. Guests will also have access to a library, spa, gym, marina, beach area, shopping, a bar and nightclub, according to Travel + Leisure.

Quintessentially Lifestyle has been providing its members with services such as specialist advice, exclusive benefits and assistance in a variety of areas since it was founded in 2000. Membership costs approximately $19,000 per year.

Setting sail Breaking into the super yacht category was a smart move by Quintessentially as the sailing category has seen significant growth in the past decade.

According to Fondazione Altagamma, new order sales for super yachts have increased by 7.5 percent since 2003.

Also, super yachts have seen a value of 8.7 billion euro, or $9.7 billion at current exchange, in 2016, amounting to 295 yachts and Italy being labeled as the largest manufacturer worldwide (see story).

At a smaller scale, luxury automakers have tried their hand at bringing driving know-how to the nautical realm.

British automaker Aston Martin made its official entry into the water with the unveiling of its first powerboat at the Monaco Yacht Show in September.

Developed in partnership with Quintessence Yachts, the AM37 combines the knowledge of Aston Martin’s craftsmen with the boat maker’s engineering. Aston Martin has been branching out into new product categories through collaborations as it looks to build a full lifestyle around its brand (see story).

"Quintessentially One will be impeccable once finished, offering the very best service and with every luxury imaginable - it's taken years and years of designing and planning from the most talented creatives in the world," Mr. Simpson said.

"It's already proving to be incredibly popular, and it hasn't even been built yet," he said. "Our existing services are unrivaled and highly respected globally, and the building of this boat will only enhance this."

Other notable cities topping the list include London (6), Paris (4) and Venice (3)

From relaxing in an open-air bathroom in the midst of a Botswana-based safari, to admiring Big Sur’s clear night sky with the help of a hotel’s in-house astronomer, Elite Traveler have chosen the world’s 100 best hotels for 2017.

This year’s list includes Four Seasons Bora Bora, where the edge of the infinity pool blends seamlessly into the deep blue ocean, with hotel attendants on hand to provide chilled towels and frozen treats. Amenities include a fitness centre – with an over-water sunrise yoga platform, a holistic spa and tennis courts to name a few.

If it’s a digital detox you seek, it doesn’t get much better than Lion Sands Game Reserve in South Africa, where guests can sleep under the stars in one of their many treehouses. Set amid the pure and untouched wild, there is no electricity – and certainly no WiFi. Its high thatch roof, luxurious wooden finishes and African decor make this hotel the picture of opulence.

One of the countries that have been recognised as being home to some of the best hotels in the world include the USA, particularly New York and California. New York City’s hotels include Baccarat Hotel & Residences New York, Carlyle, A Rosewood Hotel, Four Seasons Hotel New York, Mandarin Oriental New York, The Greenwich Hotel, The Peninsula New York and The St. Regis New York. On the West coast, hotels include Beverly Wilshire, a Four Seasons Hotel, Post Ranch Inn, Hotel Bel-Air and Meadowood Napa Valley.

Located along the rugged stretch of California’s central coast, Post Ranch Inn offers ideal conditions to view celestial objects in the night sky. Catch Big Sur on a clear night and you’ll be able to admire stars, nebulas and more using the resort’s powerful telescope with the help of the in-house astronomer. Alternatively, Meadowood Napa Valley in St. Helena, California, is set upon a sprawling 250-acre estate. You won’t need to stray from the property to find things to do – there are 4.5 miles of hiking trails to be walked, a nine-hole golf course with a golf studio and driving range, seven outdoor tennis courts and a state of the art, 14,000 square-foot spa with eight treatment rooms.

Meanwhile, in New York City, guests can enjoy the luxury of the world’s first La Mer spa at Baccarat Hotel & Residences before taking a dip in the 5 square foot marble indoor swimming pool. The 114 room hotel has spared no expense and includes a $60 million residential penthouse.

On the New York City coming the top city on the global list, Fred Dixon, NYC & Company president and CEO, said: “New York City offers a wide range of luxury accommodations to fit every taste, from marquee properties that reflect NYC’s bright lights to boutique gems tucked away on charming side streets, and we are thrilled that Elite Traveler Magazine has named seven of our finest in its Top 100 Hotels 2017. With the most active hotel development pipeline in the country, we look forward to notable accommodations continuing to open across the five boroughs.”

Italy delivers a stellar performance, with a total of 16 hotels making the list, including three in Venice, two in Positano and two in Capri.

The UK also dominates the list, with hotels including The Berkeley, Claridge’s, The Connaught, Corinthia Hotel London, The Ritz London, Savoy and Cliveden in Taplow.

The Top California and New York Hotels in the Elite Traveler Top 100 Hotels 2017:

Here's what they are saying...

"It is impossible to overdo luxury. Give us the luxuries of life, and we will dispense with its necessaries. Easy to say, hard to be able to do unless you know the Guru of Luxury, Lorre White. I have traveled to many countries with Lorre and she really knows luxury. When she is not around me, I always watching Lorre’s videos and I read Lorre’s blog to keep up on what is new in the luxury market."Princess Victoria London

"Lorre White is a great expert source for luxury knowledge and insights. She is also a great connector in the luxury industry."Milton Pedraza, CEO, Luxury Institute, LLC The Wealth Report

"Lorre's take on the Luxury market is refreshing and frankly very much needed. Her stance on luxury as a "quality of life" vs. gluttonous amassing of quantity couldn't possibly be a timelier message given the times we live in."Michael, eVelvet Rope media, owner

"Lorre is ground breaking and creative and brings a unique and much needed luxury reach to the web with her timely Luxury Channel on iTunes & her LuxGuru blog. Now anyone in the world can watch."Peter M. Deeb, Chairman, Hampton & Cie SA (Suisse)

"I love working with Lorre, as she is truly unique expert in her field. She has a vast experience of luxury market and a very impressive international network. She knows the best luxuries by living her life in luxury."Mervi Sippola, Luxury Consultant, Monaco

"I have been a client of Lorre and White Light Consulting about the US expansion plans for Flow, an endurance drink for golfers. I am always impressed with her marketing ideas, professionalism and amazing international contacts."Marko Sjoblom , Flow Owner, Finland/Monaco